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THE BASUTO WITNESS ÉGALEMENT INTITULÉ THE ACCUSED

Lot 33
15.11.2023 14:30UTC +01:00
Classic
Sold
€ 30 240
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationFrance, Paris
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 1071527
Lot 33 | THE BASUTO WITNESS ÉGALEMENT INTITULÉ THE ACCUSED
Estimate value
€ 25 000 – 40 000
THE BASUTO WITNESS ÉGALEMENT INTITULÉ THE ACCUSED

ANTON VAN WOUW (1862-1945), AFRIQUE DU SUD

bronze patiné, signé à l'arrière "A VAN WOUW / Joh-burg S.A", et "FOUNDRY - G.MASSA - ROMA"

H. 31,5 cm. (12 1⁄3 in.) ; L. 23 cm. (9 in.) ; P. 15,5 cm. (6 in.)





Literature

Bibliographie comparative

M. J. Cohen, Anton van Wouw: Sculptor of South African Life, Johannesburg, 1938, pp. 35-36.



Further details

A BRONZE BUST: 'THE BASUTO WITNESS' OR 'THE ACCUSED', ANTON VAN WOUW (1862-1945), SOUTH AFRICAN


One of South Africa's most celebrated sculptors, Anton van Wouw was born near Utrecht in the Netherlands and grew up in Rotterdam. There he studied at the Academie van Beeldende Kunsten, as well as undertaking an apprenticeship in the studio of Joseph Grave, where he learnt to paint and draw. In 1889, aged 28, he emigrated to South Africa, settling first in Pretoria, but moving to Doornfontein, Johannesburg, in 1907.

Usually modelling from life van Wouw concentrated on portraying the indigenous people of his adopted country, and his work is best remembered not only for its anatomical accuracy, but also for the keen perceptiveness in rendering the precise moods and psychology of his subjects. The present bronze The Basuto Witness, alternatively titled The Accused, captures a mineworker standing as witness during a trial in the early 20th century. The torso-length figure is a poignant and genuine portrait, eschewing the idea of ‘caricature’ and further solidifying van Wouw’s œuvre as one steeped in honest and genuine representation. The Accused also reflects the power of the gaze and the artist's subtle rendering of the materials in the bronze.

Housed in the Van Wouw Museum, the sculptor's final home and studio, examples of his best-known bronzes include The Bushman Hunter (1902), The Daggasmoker, Shangaan, The Skapu Player and Zulu (all modelled in 1907), as well as popular later works, including King Khama (1925) and The Thinker (1935).
The model for this bust is also that of The Skapu Player (1907) and The Dagga Smoker (1907).
Applied technique:Metalwork
Medium:Bronze
Place of origin:Africa, South Africa
Auction house category:All other types of objects, Statuettes
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
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75008 Paris
France
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